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My Approach to Therapy

Therapy provides the time and space to reflect and gain insight into past and present experiences, thoughts, and feelings. In my practice I create a warm and accepting environment where people feel safe and supported expressing and exploring their emotions, telling their stories, and growing personally and emotionally

I specialize in working with older adolescents (18 years and older) and young adults and the wide range of issues they are faced with in the late teens, 20′ and 30’s.

These areas include identity development, life transitions, change (both expected and unexpected), identity formation, self-esteem, depression, anxiety, fears, sleep difficulties, relationships, stress-management, body-image issues, eating issues (e.g. binge eating), anger, grief and loss, and parenting. I also see individuals as they pursue their own personal exploration and growth.

In my practice I also specialize in parenting issues across the lifespan. I work with parents and caregivers of infants, young children, teens, and young adults. We work together to foster an age-appropriate and successful parent-child relationship. We focus on understanding the developmental stage their child is in, the unique issues faced during that particular stage, and the best parenting strategies to support their child.

I am an ally of the LGBTQ+ community.

I am trained and experienced in doing one-on-one therapy with adolescents and adults. I use an integrative approach which is informed by: Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Solution-Focused Therapy, Mindfulness Based Therapy, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Using an integrated approach based on the specific needs of each person, the focus is building upon existing strengths and adding new coping skills while reducing distress.

Therapy sessions last about 50 minutes. Depending on the issues being addressed and the stage in therapy (beginning or later) sessions are scheduled weekly, every other week, monthly or as needed and desired.

Our first few sessions will involve an evaluation of your needs. By the end of the evaluation, I will be able to offer you some first impressions of what our work will include and a treatment plan to follow, if you decide to continue with therapy. Please evaluate this information along with your own opinions of whether you feel comfortable working with me.

Finally, I love what I do. I am a firm believer in the healing power of relationships and am genuinely interested in teaching and practicing the powerful, positive impacts of therapy.

I look forward to meeting you!


My Experience and Training


I am a licensed doctoral-level psychologist with more than 15 years of clinical experience. I am licensed in the state of Minnesota (LP#4177) and am a member of the Minnesota Psychological Association and Minnesota Women in Psychology.

I earned my Bachelors in Psychology from the University of Vermont (1990). My Master’s degree and PhD are both from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill’s School Psychology program (1994 & 1997). I completed my clinical training in Maryland at Johns Hopkins Hospital followed by a post-doctoral fellowship in University of Minnesota’s Division of Pediatrics and Adolescent Health.

My clinical interests, experience, and training extend from adolescence into young and mid-adulthood. My doctoral degree has trained me as both a scientist and practitioner. This means that I am skilled in applying research findings to the real world and that my work is informed by current science. I will translate research findings into language and examples my clients can relate to and understand.

The settings I have worked in are varied and include inpatient and outpatient medical settings, schools, community health centers, and most recently in private practice (since 2008). I have taught graduate and undergraduate courses in psychology and learning, led therapy groups, published in scientific journals, presented at scientific conferences, and consulted with a local toy company on childhood development and toy design.

When not at work, you will find me running outside (yes, even in the winter), spending time with friends and family, baking (cookies mostly) and, if time permits, enjoying a good novel. Two of my favorite reads this year are: What it Means When a Man Falls from the Sky by Leslie Nneka Arimah and Theft By Finding: Diaries 1977-2002 by David Sedaris. My favorite re-read was Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.




Contact Me

Thank you for visiting my website, unfortunately I am not accepting new clients at this time.

For general information , please call me at 612-424-5157 or send an email. I will get back to you within 24 hours.